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Description/Abstract

Early-Holocene warming in Iceland caused rapid glacial ice melt which led to exposed landscapeson which soils developed and floras quickly established. Our chironomid-based records from northern Icelandsuggest temperatures were up to 2–2.5°C warmer than present throughout the first two millennia postdeglaciation (~10 500 to 8500 cal. BP) while sedimentary and isotopic data indicate the development of soilswithin the local environment throughout this period before catchment conditions started to stabilise around8400 cal. BP. The warming trend over this period was not uniform however, but punctuated by a series of relativelyshort-lived climatic events. Specifically inwash events are suggested by the ?13Corganic, %TOC and C/Ndata around 9600 cal. BP and 8250 cal. BP and are seen at two independent sites. There is also evidence fromthe ?18Ocarbonate and ?13Ccarbonate records which suggests that progressive evaporation of the study lakes occurred from ~8200 cal. BP, the timing of which accords well with other isotopic records of drier conditions fromaround the North Atlantic.